If you follow me on social media, you may already know that last Friday, myself and my partner Rob welcomed another member into our little family: Helios the puppy - kind of a mixture between a Jack Russell, a fox and a ferret. Part clown, part shaman, part explorer.

This next step was truly in alignment and deeply supported by our friends both in the physical and invisible realms. My guides had shown me that he would bring so a ton of light and joy into our life (hence the name ‘Helios’, which is the great god of Sun), and awaken more innocence, playfulness and joy.

Well let me tell you, it’s only been 5 days, and it’s already been quite the journey. Here are 8 valuable things I have learnt or rediscovered so far, about myself, puppies, and life. To keep it short and easy to digest, here are the first 4, with the following to come very soon:

1. How you show up is EVERYTHING

An amazing thing to witness has been the little Helios as a beautiful mirror and indicator of my own energy. When I am fully engaged and present, feeling my body and my energy, so is he similarly engaged, playful, alive, vibrant, active.

But when for some reason or other I get hypnotised by my thoughts, my to-do list, and my 3D, linear way of thinking (and I leave the state of Presence), I immediately see a look of confusion on his little face, and sense his body pausing, as if waiting for me to return.

Puppy Lesson #1: all of life responds to your energy, and how you show up IN THE MOMENT.

And by the moment, I mean now, right now…not in the future but in the HERE and NOW. People, dogs, events and circumstances that are coming your way all depend on how you show up with your vibration, presence, energy. The more you are an embodiment of spirit / life force / source, the more others and things in your life will reflect this.

2. Playfulness is a natural expression

I have noticed how Rob dives in to his playfulness effortlessly, throwing himself on the ground and rolling around with glee. And Helios LOVES it: he responds with his whole being.

At the beginning, something within me resisted doing the same. I would sit on the edge of the sofa, a part of me not wanting to dive into the flow of playfulness that was arising within me. It felt alien, big, uncontrollable.

But when I did, oh did it feel good. I noticed the dance between an old identity of who I thought I was i.e the peaceful, serene wallflower, and the life force within me. The swing between a part of me that wanted to sit down and observe, and the deep inner joy that was arising from being silly with Helios.

Puppy Lesson #2: there is a natural movement within you towards play and joy.

Think of it this way: you are probably your most joyous and creative self when you don’t have any expectations or stories of how something should be, or who YOU should be.

How many people do you know that stopped enjoying their passion when suddenly it became their work and they started to unconsciously place tremendous pressure on themselves?

If you free yourself from the expectation and find that state of play in your life and work, then you truly tap into the infinite amount of energy and intelligence that is within. Ever seen the famous meme, 'Don't Grow Up, It's A Trap!'? This is what its about!

3. Structure is essential for growth

When you have a puppy, structure is everything: namely, where and when they eat, poop and sleep. And so myself and Rob have had no choice but to adapt and start living around Helios’ little system.

The grounding from this has been quite amazing. You see, a part of me has always run away from any form of structure, choosing instead to follow the free and joyful flow of my guidance as it arises and moves throughout the day. But what I have discovered is that, contrary to what I unconsciously believed, structure does not negate this. Quite the opposite in fact, it offers a clearer container for the joyful expression of spirit to arise.

Puppy Lesson #3: structure is an essential part of the growth process.

Like a stick supporting a young tree, it guides the expression of life by giving it direction. It allows it to grow into its fullest expression as it gently holds it.

You don’t need much of it to have a beneficial impact: just enough in fact to satisfy some parts of your being that still need support, i.e the immature parts of your ego.

Take some time to notice which aspects of your ego need development (for me for example this would be money management, food, and admin tasks), and add a little bit of structure to them. Then watch the magic unfold!

4. It’s OK to piss yourself a little

I don’t mean literally of course - although if thats something you’re into then be my guest. No, what struck me about Helios was that he had no qualms to urinate where he felt like it - i.e the carpet, the kitchen floor or the neighbours patio.

And do you know what? I never ever noticed any feeling of guilt or shame in him. It was a simple piss, then it was done and he was wagging his tail and smiling again.

Why? Because he had no previous knowledge of right or wrong, or good or bad. So something like pissing himself was simply another expression of energy. Not something he identified with. And because he wasn't identified with a specific outcome or behaviour, he was free! Free from learnt limitations. Free from worrying about doing the right thing. Free from how he was perceived.

Of course, this innocent (devoid of expectation) state is before us humans intervene by gently guiding him (with copious amounts of treats and ‘Good Boy!’) towards a preferred behaviour. But that is all it really is: a preferred behaviour. In other words, a ‘made up’ learnt pattern.

Puppy Lesson #4: all polarities such as right/wrong, good/bad are LEARNT.

These dualities are engrained in your mind from your family, your ancestors, the collective consciousness, and from your childhood experiences. None of it is absolute: it has all been ‘made up’ somewhere along the line. So if you are navigating your life by what you think is ‘good’ or ‘right’, then you are navigating from a very limiting place.

How about instead navigating your life by what is an expression of your purest, most innocent and joyful energy instead? From the outside it might look like you are doing ‘right’ and ‘good’ things, but from the inside, you are mainly doing them because they feel good.

Why?

Because they are in alignment with your inner being, the part of you connected to source and spirit.

There you go, a few lessons straight from Helios to you. Stay tuned for 4 more coming your way asap.